The race to build the UK’s next new runway has heated up, as Heathrow and Gatwick airports unveiled their plans for expansion to the Airports Commission. Both airports are applying for extra space, meaning the UK will gain a second runway at Gatwick or a choice between building a new third runway or extending a current runway at Heathrow.

Gatwick has argued that its own expansion plans, coming in at an estimated £7.8 billion, would be cheaper than Heathrow’s as well as being completed five years earlier and catering to 10 million more passengers.